Applying for a Working Holiday Visa to France (for Canadians)

Hi Jackson! Thanks for your website, it is very helpful! From your personal experience or from what you are noticing currently, do you happen to have a delay estimation from the time the application is sent to the consulate by vfs to when vfs advises that the passeport and visa are ready for pick up? My flight is in a couple of days and I am stressing really hard because I have no clue what I will Do if I do not receive it on time (either delay or cancel my trip). I applied for à long term visa because I will be in France for 11 months. I Wonder if there is any way to aplply for the visa from Europe within the 90 day time limit. Do you happen to know ? Thank you so much. You are my last hope at obtaining some sort of useful info now..

Hello Li, you’re very welcome. I have applied for two different France visas through VFS and in both cases, my passport was mailed back to me within 7-8 days of my appointment. It’s hard to say if that is standard for most people or not. And generally it is not possible to apply for a France visa as a visitor on French soil (certainly not the first WHV). What type of visa are you applying for?

Thank you so much for your Quick response, that gives me some hope 🙂 i am applying for a long term visa (tourist). And actually I was wonderijg whether it was also possible to do it abroad (for exemple in the French Embassy in England which is outside the Schengen zone). Thank you so much Jackson 🙂

I am not sure about that, it is best to confirm with the embassy directly. My understanding is that in general, you should be at least a resident of the country in which you are submitting an application (if not your country of citizenship). Though there could be exceptions.
I’m not sure if this is applicable to you, but Canadians who have gotten a WHV to France can apply for a 12 month extension via the APS. And this can fully be done on French soil. https://pvtistes.net/en/extend-working-holiday-france/

Thanks again for all tha precious info :)!!

Hi Jackson,

I hope you’re well! I am about to finalize a renting lease agreement and the landlord is asking for “Assurance Habitation” (home insurance). This would amount to a monthly fee that I’d get from a company of my choice. However, I already have the ACS insurance purchased as part of my Working Holiday Visa application, and from what I see in the certificate, there is also a “Civil Liability” section which includes damage to property. Doesn’t this count as the Assurance Habitation?

Thank you as always for your help!

All the best,
Niloo

Congrats on finding housing! These are separate protections. I am certainly not a lawyer, but civil liability protects you from legal recourse when you cause injury or damages to another individual. Housing insurance is to protect yourself as resident and the landlord, from potential damages. For example if your apartment gets robbed and you lose valuables, that would not be a claim to bring to your medical insurer nor your landlord. Rather it would be the housing insurance. Hope that helps

Hello,

Is anyone familiar with the medical insurance (repatriation) for residents of Quebec as well as the attestation de séjour de la RAMQ? With the letter from RAMQ is it still necessary to purchase medical insurance?

On a side note, is it possible to work in Monaco on this visa?

Hi there. To respond to your questions:
1) Yes, private medical insurance is still required for the WHV application, even for residents of Quebec.
2) No. Monaco has its own WHV program, and at the moment it is only available to citizens of the UK.

This article is available in French too, in case your are francophone https://pvtistes.net/dossiers/demande-du-pvt-france-pour-canadiens/

Hi Jackson,

I’ve landed in Marseille and it’s so beautiful! However, I tried opening a simple everyday chequing account at a bank, and was told that I would not be able to do so until I have a job/salary. I have money that I need to pour into an account and I thought the WHV allowed its holders to open a bank account even without a job (I do plan on finding a job, but that’s not the point). I spoke with a few people and am getting contradictory info regarding this, some say I need to try out other banks or perhaps the person I spoke with doesn’t know what WHV is. Could you please give me some information on how to proceed?

Thank you!

Niloo

Hello Niloo. It’s true that the information you get will vary from bank to bank, branch to branch, and even employee to employee (just because the WHV is not very common). But the bottom line is that as a WHV holder, yes it is possible to open a checking account in France, even without a job. I was able to do so at Credit Agricole without problem. All I had to provide was my passport, visa, and local address. I used my Wise account to fund it with some euros (though I don’t think they required me to). If you’re having trouble, try a few different banks and eventually you will find someone that can help. And if you need a Wise account, pvtistes has a special deal https://pvtistes.net/en/bonsplans/wise-free-transfer/

A thousand thanks, Jackson! I went to LCL Banque this morning (Credit Agricole is affiliated to it), and they gave me an appointment next week to open up an account. 🙂 Thank goodness. I appreciate all of your help, as well as the promptness of your responses!

Hi Jackson,

I am confused as to whether Canadians need to provide a Medical Certificate of ¨good health¨. After filling out the online application on the france-visa.gouv.fr a supporting documents page shows up and states that we do… but on different blogs I have read that we don’t. Can anyone please clearify ?

Thanks !
Giselle

Hello. As stated in chapter 4, Canadians are exempt from providing a medical certificate and background check.

Hi Jackson,

Thanks for your answer, do you have any official source of information that can confirm this? What I can see stated on official document checklists is ¨Medical certificate (if bilateral agreement provides for this)¨ however I cannot find any official information regarding the specifics of the France- Canada bilateral agreement that excepts medical certificates other than word of mouth. How do I know this hasn’t changed since you applied?

Also, in case of no return ticket, must we write a ¨letter of commitment¨ that is seperate from the letter of motivation/cover letter? even if funds on bank statement meet the requirements?

Thanks for the help, it is greatly appreaciated !

1. You can contact the French embassy or consulate to ask if you’d like. We don’t have any other source to provide.
2. You don’t need a separate letter. Just make your commitment clear in your letter of motivation.

Hi again romar. To add to my first answer, at the time of writing you won’t find any official sources that explicitly tell you that a medical certificate and background check are not necessary. The reason the official checklist says “if the bilateral agreement provides for this” is because some other nationalities are required to provide these documents and it is specified in their respective bilateral agreements with France. If you look up and read in full the Franco-Canadian bilateral agreement, you won’t see any mention of a medical certificate or background check. It is by omission of these mentions that we are meant to understand they are not needed. Indeed, I and other recent applicants have never been asked to provide these. Hope that helps.

Hi again Jackson, hope you’re doing well.

Regarding the VFS Global Centre in Toronto, I absolutely cannot seem to find an appointment for the “Long Stay – Working Holiday” Visa category. I managed to get a slot fairly quickly by clicking on “Long Stay – Any other visa category.” I’m hesitating to move forward with this, though. Would they accept my appointment if I went ahead and booked it with this category, if they do in other cities like Montreal?

Many thanks!

Niloo

Hi again Jackson, I just got an appointment! Nevermind regarding my previous question. 🙂 Thanks again for this helpful and reassuring blog!

Niloo

Glad to hear that. How did you end up getting the appointment? It may be helpful info for other readers. Feel free to read our other resources about the WHV in France. https://pvtistes.net/en/useful-tips-and-advice/?filter-type=any&filter-country=france-en&filter-cat=any

Thanks for the additional info/link, Jackson!

Sure, I just had my appointment today and it went very well! For anyone wondering if they can simply opt for “Long Stay – Any Other Visa Category” in the VFS Global Centre website, please rest assured that it DOES work as a substitute for the more specific “Long Stay – Working Holiday Visa.” You will find an open slot a lot more quickly/easily, too. I tried the “Working Holiday” one multiple times a day for a few days with no luck, but I got an opening on my first try with “Any Other Visa Category.” I had many slots, in fact, to choose from.

My reasoning when making this choice was that, if on the France Visa application form I have to choose “Other” under Visa type, and then specify as “Working Holiday,” then that means that “Long Stay – Any Other Visa Category” can effectively be used as an umbrella category including Working Holiday visas.

I had absolutely no problems today during my appointment, so I know it works. 🙂

I hope this clarifies things for anyone wondering.

Thank you again Jackson!

Niloo

Tried everyday, multiple times a day for over a month to get an appointment for ‘Long Stay – Working Holiday Visa’… I Decided to try my luck with booking a ‘Long Stay – Any Other Visa Category’ since there was availability in this category. Had my appointment today and I wasn’t even questioned about the category. Therefore, I second that the ’Any Other Visa’ category can effectively be used for ‘Working Holiday’.

Hello again! Just some questions on the health insurance certificate that needs to be submitted during the in-person appointment:
1. Does the insurance need to cover all EU countries or just France?
2. The online visa application just says the supporting document needs to show “proof of subscription or promise to subscribe to an insurance policy covering the medial costs”—are there more specific details on what this policy needs to include (ie. minimum EURO coverage amount, pregnancy, dental, 0 deductible, etc)?
It’s very vague in the online application so just want to make sure I’m meeting all the requirements!
Many thanks 🙂

(sorry meant to also add “civil liability”, as I’ve seen that mentioned in the youth mobility agreement but not sure it’s actually enforced?)

1. It needs to cover France. But many will cover all of Europe anyway.
2. It needs to cover all medical expenses, plus hospitalization and repatriation. There’s no specific guidance on deductible amount, that depends on each person’s budget and risk tolerance.

I personally got Globe WHV for my working holiday in France. I didn’t know it at the time, but they cover civil liability as well. But it’s not a requirement. https://pvtistes.net/en/whv-insurance/

Hi Jackson,

First of all, thank you so much for this helpful blog!

I have a question regarding the (non)-availability of VFS Global Centre appointment slots. I started my Visa application today and need to make an appointment at the VFS Global Centre – Toronto. No slots available for now, but my departure is in mid-May (although I need to get my Visa stuff in order by April 30 at the latest). Do I just need to keep refreshing/checking for slot-openings? I’ve looked up information online and have read posts from people who were stressed with this part of the process, but it seems like there is some “method to the madness” because they eventually got an appointment after a couple of weeks of trying. Does the VFS Global Centre provide slots in batches, say at the beginning of every week and month? Do I just keep trying, and will I get an appointment on time? Or should I take other measures?

Any reassurance or advice on this matter would be much appreciated.

Thank you!

Hello there. We don’t have visibility into VFS release schedules, so I recommend checking in the morning over the next few days. If you still see no new appointments, consider contacting VFS directly to ask them. Their contact information can be found on their website (click the Toronto link in chapter 5 of this guide). You still have lots of time so don’t worry too much. Best of luck!

Whew, glad to know I have time. Alright, will do! Thanks again for the help!

Hello! Sorry, just some questions on the online application for the France WHV:
1. For the duration of the stay, the options it now provides are “3-6 months, 6 months-1 year, or more than 1 year.” If we intend on renewing the WHV for a second year, should we select “more than 1 year”? Or is that irrelevant at this point and we should “6 months-1 year”?
2. “State if you have any family members who live in France”–is this just referring to immediate family (ie. spouse/children/parent/grandparent), or also distant relatives should be included (ie. aunt, cousin)?
Thanks a billion for all these helpful articles!

You are very welcome.
1. You should select 6-12 months. You will get a one year visa, and then the renewal is a separate process. They do not give anyone a two year visa right away.
2. This is completely up to you and should have no impact on your application, whether you have zero or 20 family members.

thanks again, super helpful! 🙂

Hi there! just a question on the application: you’ve stated that “Applications are accepted no earlier than three months before your planned departure date” — are you referring to the initial online application, or the in-person appointment? Could we do the online application 4 months before the planned departure date, then the in-person appointment 1 month later at 3 months before planned departure date?

Also on the Passport expiry, you’ve stated that the “Canadian passport valid for at least 6 months beyond the last day of your stay in France” however on the online visa application form it states “with a period of validity at least 3 months longer than the date on which you intend to leave the Schengen Area or, in the case of a long stay, at least three months longer than the expiry date of the visa requested.” So is it 3 months or 6 months?

Thanks so much!! 🙂

1. You can start the online application whenever you like. But the VFS appointment should not be earlier than 3 months. It is at the end of the in-person appointment that your application is considered truly complete and then mailed to the French consulate.
2. You are correct that it is technically 3 months, but we always advise 6 months because it allows for more flexibility. Especially because Canadians can stay up to 90 days in the Schengen zone as tourists in a 180 day period, which means at the end of the WHV one could technically leave and immediately legally re-enter France/Europe for another 90 days as a simple tourist (because long stay visas like the WHV do not count toward the 90 days). If your passport were to only be valid for 3 months after your WHV, this option would be cutting it close.
Check out our other articles about the France WHV! https://pvtistes.net/en/articles/?filter-country=france-en&filter-cat=

Thanks so much, this is really helpful! appreciate the advice 🙂